All posts by Martin

Des Moines To Missoula and Back Disc Golf Iowa Food

Exploring Des Moines – Day two – Aug 2021

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I spent most of the day in my AirBnB working, however, I did have two excursions.
My first outing was to Mullets Restaurant.  Mullets was recommended to me as a great place to eat breakfast.  This recommendation came from the bartender at the Meskwaki Casino where I stayed the night before arriving in Des Moines.  I have found that most recommendations that I’ve been gotten along the way have been spot on and my breakfast didn’t disappoint.
I loved the pictures covering the walls of people with mullets!  There were pictures of some of my favorite Phillies from the 80’s as well as an area for patrons to send in their own pictures.  I’m thinking of pulling my old mullet picture out and sending it in!
The staff was very friendly and the food was served quickly.  I had the breakfast rarebit and it was rich and delicious.  I was also able to get WiFi here so enjoyed a leisurely meal and spent some time getting work done.
My other outing was after work to Pickard Disc Golf Course.  I was looking forward to this course as it had recently been used on the Disc Golf Pro Tour.

An elevated tee pad platform

It was another brutally hot day and I did get a little frustrated when I arrived.  Due to the recent tournament, the baskets were not in the normal positions.  I found myself wandering around in the heat trying to figure things out.  This is a pet peeve of mine.  I hate when I get to a course and the signage is so bad that I spend half my time just trying to find the correct basket.  I did, after some time, manage to figure things out using my UDisc app. Otherwise… five star.

Deer on the course.
Up the hill to an island green

From the platform over the water.

My drive rolled back into the water.
I really enjoyed this course.  It was beautifully maintained and challenging with rolling hills, some wooded shots and water that was in play.  Although I feel I played well, I did manage to land two disc in water but easily retrievable. I hope to play this course again some day.

This was one of my drives.  I nailed the shot from here!  One of my best birdies on the trip.

Gettysburg To Myrtle Beach and Back Pennsylvania

Gettysburg, PA – Dec 2020

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I left Pottsville on my way to Myrtle Beach and decided to see Gettysburg.  I was not in any kind of rush and although it was a really cold day out, I wanted to go explore.  I had visited Gettysburg on a field trip when I was in middle school but didn’t recall much of that trip.


It was 27° – cold – that day

Gettysburg has over 1300 monuments, markers and memorials

The guy that invented baseball fought here.

I enjoyed reading about the history and seeing where both sides fought from
Des Moines Iowa State Fair Iowa Food

Iowa State Fair, Des Moines, IA – Aug 2021

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Since I couldn’t get into my AirBnB in Des Moines until later in the afternoon, my plan was to arrive early in the day and get to the Iowa State Fair.  How often would I have the opportunity to go to this fair. I arrived in time to catch the last day.

What do you do when you go to a state fair?  Eat!
I ate the Bacon-wrapped Rib on-a-stick
I ate the curly fries with cheese
I ate the hard boiled egg with
 Old Bay Seasoning on a stick
I did not eat the Iowa lobster

There were fun things to see including the famous butter cow!  Yes…. it is a full size sculpture made of butter which is housed behind glass in the butter room.

I was curious what they did with the cow after the fair.  So I did a little digging.  After the fair, they turn off the fridge and let the butter soften.  They then put it into about 20 5 gallon buckets and store it until the next year.  They store the butter and will use it for future butter cow sculptures…. about 4 years worth!
Just like other fairs, there were other interesting things to see.

Lots of people here and I could see Des Moines in the distance.

I left the fair around noon but did go back in the evening to see the Doobie Brothers close out the fair.
Stories From the Road Places & Destinations Thoughts and Reflections To Missoula and Back Van Life Iowa

Field of Dreams: A Surprising Detour in My Journey

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” If you build it, they will come”

When I embarked on my journey from Portland, ME, with the goal of heading west, my primary objective was to cross the Mississippi River and venture into Iowa as swiftly as possible. I reasoned that exploring the eastern side of the Mississippi could be accomplished over a long weekend or a week-long trip at some point in the future. For now, my sights were firmly set on the uncharted territories to the west.

With over 22 hours of driving and two overnight stops behind me, I finally arrived at my first major destination around 9 A.M. on a Saturday morning. My plan was to spend the night at an AirBnB in Des Moines, so I decided to make a slight detour to the Field of Dreams in Dyersville, IA. What made this side trip particularly appealing was the opportunity to leave the major highways behind and navigate the scenic backroads of Iowa. At times, I found myself traversing gravel roads in the heart of Iowa’s picturesque countryside.

Driving through Iowa

Gravel roads in Iowa

As I approached the Field of Dreams, I noticed that it was free to park and enter, welcoming visitors to explore its hallowed grounds. The field buzzed with activity; families and friends scattered across the landscape. Children played catch with their fathers, while others enthusiastically ran the bases. Families lounged on blankets, and groups posed for photographs, capturing cherished moments.

I decided to take a moment to unwind and appreciate the tranquil atmosphere. I reclined in the exquisitely manicured outfield, allowing the serenity to wash over me. I wandered into the cornfields and gazed out at the iconic field. My journey then took me up to the house, where I explored the bleachers and visited the charming gift shop. As I soaked in the ambience, I couldn’t help but observe the diverse crowd, spanning all age groups, with a few individuals even donning complete baseball uniforms.

Unexpectedly, an announcement echoed through the air, instructing everyone to clear the field. It turned out that I had arrived just in time for the last “Ghost Game” of the season, an hour-long, interactive comedy performance presented by the renowned Ghost Players, aptly known as the “Greatest Show on Dirt.” I had no prior knowledge of this delightful surprise!

Much like in the movie, the Ghost Players emerged from the cornfields, each introduced by enthusiastic announcers. To my amazement, some of them had actually appeared in the original film. The performance included the rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner and a brief history of this long-standing tradition, which had been captivating audiences for over 30 years. The Ghost Players engaged in a friendly game of catch before mingling with the crowd. Selecting a few lucky kids from the audience, they allowed them to bat against the ghosts and round the bases.

I watched in sheer delight for a while, savoring this unexpected spectacle, before eventually resuming my journey towards Des Moines. This impromptu stop had set a perfect tone for the adventures that lay ahead.

Roadtrips Family Clan in Orlando and Back

The Family Clan in Orlando

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I need to plan an upcoming roadtrip stemming from my parents getting a house for our clan in the Orlando area.  The clan includes my folks, my siblings, my kids and my nieces and nephews. I figure since I’ll be driving to Florida for this, I should take advantage of warm weather and see where I can explore.  Based on the timing of the Orlando reservation, I think the most I could spend on the road, before needing to be back, would be up to 11 weeks.

Here are my original thoughts for the best strategy to approach this trip….

  • Get an Airbnb in Raleigh for the week and work there on the way down.  This will break up the trip nicely and allow me to get most of the driving done on the weekends.  Besides MaidPro Raleigh located there, I have a few friends in the area that I have not seen in way too long. Raleigh is one of those areas in Virginia that I’ve yet to visit. It will also give me a good working location as I really enjoy working and living out of AirBnBs.  I get to experience, rather than just visit, locations.
  • Then I’ll take a vacation week while at the rental in Orlando with my family.
  • From there I’ll head down the east coast and stay with my Uncle and/or his daughter and family in Boca Raton for a work week.  I’ll be able to visit a handful of Florida offices from Boca.
  • Go down to Miami and the keys for a week.  The Keys, especially Key West, has been on my list for a long time and I’ve never had the opportunity to get there.  This will also allow me to visit our Miami and Miami Beach offices.
  • Cut across the Everglades and head up the west coast to my folks in Sarasota for a few weeks.
  • During my stay in Sarasota, I’ll take a week trip and do a northeast loop to work and visit MaidPro offices including Tampa, Orlando and The Villages.  I’ll do this while based at my folks but be on the road for the week.
  • Leaving Sarasota, I’ll head north and follow along the gulf coast around the panhandle to New Orleans and stay with an old friend that I have not seen in decades!  I’m really looking forward to catching up with him and revisiting the city that I lived in for about 18 months.  I haven’t been there since I left in 1993.  I’ll also visit the Baton Rouge.
  • Head out to Lake Charles, up to Shreveport and across to Jackson, MS.  I think I can do that in a weekend while working that Monday in Jackson, MS.  When I lived in New Orleans, my work territory was Jackson.  I wonder how much it has changed.
  • Birmingham, AL looks to be at the right distance to fit into the drive home.  I’ll take the opportunity to see as many of our Alabama offices as possible.
  • Drive home through Tennessee, Virginia and maybe a stop over with cousins in NJ.

Mapped out, it looks something like this (the green pins are MaidPro locations).

I like the thought of following the full Florida coast.  This will end up being a full investigation of Florida and if possible, get to see all of the Florida offices.

I also like that I’m going to explore alot of Louisiana and follow along the length of the Texas border without actually getting into Texas.

I did consider traveling a little further out west to the Texas offices. It would add about a month in order to get to all of those offices and there isn’t enough time on this trip.

I also considered heading home north through Arkansas, up to Kansas City and through St Louis.  We have alot of offices in those areas I’d like to see.  Unfortunately, again, there isn’t enough time on this trip.  These will just have to wait for another time. Possibly when traveling to or from the river trip later next year.

We’ll see how this develops!

Roadtrips Missoula To Missoula and Back Montana

To Missoula, MT and Back – Aug/Oct 2021

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Leaving Portland, ME on Aug 16, 2021
Arriving in Missoula, MT on September 15, 2021
Arriving in Boston, MA on October 13, 2021

These are posts from my trip to Missoula, MT and back. I haven’t added everything yet but continually add new posts. I really enjoy writing about this trip after the fact because I get to relive it as I write, dig up old pictures and research some of the facts of the locations I visited.

This was my first roadtrip that lasted more than two weeks and it went very smoothly. I saw so many new places and had so many new experiences as well as meeting people from all over. I enjoyed working and living in new places making me feel happier, healthier and even more engaged with our home office.

(Note: Some of these posts were migrated from my old blog platform. I’m going through all of my posts and updating the formatting, however, I have not gotten to some of the older ones yet. So formatting might not look so great.)

Roadtrips

To “I Can See Canada” and Back – Jul/Aug 2021

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July 29 to Aug 2, 2021

I had been promising a trip to see my friend from college for a few years, but the timing never lined up. So a took the opportunity to continue testing out the vehicle and I headed north to Vermont for that long awaited visit. Although it was only five days, it was a great trip with lots of experiences and I made an adventure out of it. My campsite at the northern most point of the trip looked out across a lake at Canada.

Here is a continually growing list of blog posts from my this trip to Vermont…. and some pictures until I actually put up a few posts.

    Indianapolis Roadtrips Indiana

    To Indianapolis and Back – June 2021

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    Leave Boston, MA – June 9, 2021
    Arrive in Indianapolis, IN – June 14, 2021
    Arrive in Boston, MA – June 19, 2021

    I knew I had a week coming up where my girlfriend and kids were all out of town so I decided I’d get some more practice in with the van. I did some research and planned a trip up the Hudson River Valley. I was going to drive and camp from New York City all the way up to the edge of Canada, following the Hudson River Valley for most of it. Then, just a few days before leaving, I realized that this was the week my niece was diving in the Olympic trials in Indianapolis, IN. I had never had the opportunity to see her dive before so I pivoted and went to Indianapolis instead.

    These are posts from my trip to Indianapolis, IN and back. I haven’t added everything yet but continually add new posts. I really enjoy writing about this trip after the fact because I get to relive it as I write, dig up old pictures and research some of the facts of the locations I visited.

    (I havn’t posted anything from this trip yet… but here are a few pictures.)

      Roadtrips To Myrtle Beach and Back

      To Myrtle Beach and Back – Dec/Jan 20/21

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      Leaving Wilmington, MA on Dec 24, 2020
      Arriving in Myrtle Beach, SC on December 26, 2020
      Arriving in Charlotte, NC on December 30, 2020
      Arriving in Burlington, MA on January 8, 2021

      I was sitting home just before Christmas and decided to get out of town. My kids and my girlfriend were both away so I thought I’d head south and find somewhere warmer to spend the holidays. I reached out to my brother in Charlotte and after some discussion, I decided to head to Myrtle Beach where he would meet me for New Years Eve.

      These are posts from my trip to Myrtle Beach, SC and back. I haven’t added everything yet but continually add new posts. I really enjoy writing about this trip after the fact because I get to relive it as I write, dig up old pictures and research some of the facts of the locations I visited.